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Displaying items by tag: Giant’s Causeway

Members of an open sea swimming team have become the first to complete a challenging route between Scotland and the Giant’s Causeway, as the Greenock Telegraph reports.

The Oa Giants set out from Islay last Saturday 8 August and crossed the Oa Channel by relay, reaching Northern Ireland’s North Coast on Sunday 9 August with a final time of 16 hours and 57 minutes.

Comprising Keith Garry, Dominic Mudge, Bill Donnelly, Chris Judge, Colin Lindsay and John McElroy, the team were already record-breakers heading into their challenge.

That was after setting a time of nine hours, two minutes and 41 seconds across the North Channel between the Gobbins and Portpatrick as a practice swim the previous weekend.

And their achievements all the more impressive knowing that the youngest of the group, Chris Judge, is 38 years old.

Judge also told of the “real mental battle” posed by the difficult north-south Oa Channel crossing, not least contending with the potentially lethal stings of lion’s mane jellyfish.

The Greenock Telegraph has more on the story HERE.

Published in Sea Swim

Robert Dickson & Sean Waddilove, Tokyo Olympic 49er Sailors 

Dublin dinghy sailors Robert Dickson of Howth Yacht Club and Sean Waddilove of Skerries Sailing Club achieved their goal of representing Ireland in the 49er class, almost six years to the day after first setting foot in a 49er skiff at their home club of Howth Yacht Club in County Dublin in 2015.

The voyage was a magnificent one becoming U23 World champions in 2018 before out sailing rivals double Olympian Ryan Seaton and Seafra Guilfoyle in some style for selection in Lanzarote in March 2021 to win the last European Olympic place for Tokyo.

Follow their progress here.